INDUSTRY CONNECTIONS
like that we recycle those parts, too,” Latko added. “Any money from that goes into the vehicle maintenance fund, too, and that amount doesn’t come out of our budget.” Both districts recycle tires but differently. “When the steering tires go below tread
depth, they’re still usable as rear tires. When they go below usable depth for rear tires, we sell them and they are recapped and sold for semis to use,” noted Latko. Meanwhile, Houston reduces its overall
oil consumption by using retreaded tires. “Our specifications are extremely tight. We only cap a tire once. Nothing over four years old,” Swackhamer added. Eco-driving courses for Houston drivers
A ‘WIN-WIN-WIN’
FLEET PROS IN TEXAS AND ARIZONA ARE DIVIDED BY MANY MILES, BUT SHARE THE SAME SHARP FOCUS ON SUSTAINABILITY
WRITTEN BY ERIC WOOLSON H
ouston and Mesa, Ariz., are 1,179 miles apart, but trans- porters Mark Swackhamer and Ronald Latko are on the
same page when it comes to implementing environmentally friendly practices. Swackhamer, senior manager of fleet oper-
ations for the Houston Independent School District, and Latko, director of transportation and fleet management for Mesa Unified School District #4, are two of the nation’s top practitioners of fleet sustainability. Te districts are the largest in their respective states. Both both recycle oil and filters, and have focused on reducing waste streams from their maintenance shops. Te districts reduced their fleet’s carbon
footprint by using more propane-powered vehicles. Houston and Mesa live the credo that it’s important for every district to educate the public about the benefits of sustainability. Both have achieved big financial and environ- mental results by sharply reducing bus idling times and switching to more biodiesel. Te Houston district, honored in May with the National Association of Fleet Administrators’ 2013 Excellence in Public Fleet Sustainability Award, has pursued sus- tainability for nearly a decade. “Awards don’t
18 School Transportation News July 2013
motivate us to do what’s right. Although when you get them, people realize what you’ve done,” Swackhamer said. Latko’s thorough approach includes recy-
cling paper the transportation department generates each day, as well as cans, bottles and paper left on the district’s 544 buses. “We go through a lot of paper because
of routing. We have the seventh-largest special education fleet in the country,” Latko said. “When you’re transporting that many special education kids, you’ll have 60 or 70 route changes in a day. We’re printing copies for the driver, monitor and supervisor every time there’s a change to make sure there’s no slip-up.”
Like Houston’s continuous improvement, Mesa has focused on gradual advances in the past six years. “Tere was a time when we’d pay to have our oil taken away. Not only do we save that money today, but we’re getting paid to have it taken away,” Latko said. Resulting revenue goes into a special fund
for vehicle maintenance. Te district also recycles antifreeze, but it receives no money. “We recycle a lot of steel — brake drums
and pads, radiators, bumpers. We travel 35,000 miles a day so there are opportuni- ties for accidents. When we have damage
have produced preliminary results of a 3-per- cent increase in mileage and approximately $200,000 in savings. An electronic vehicle information reporting system has sharply reduced the idling time of Mesa’s buses, and produces $160,000 in annual fuel savings. “We’ve had a major effect on the district.
We’re on the path to using our fuel savings to increase the size of our fleet. We will eventually be an entirely propane fleet, and we’ll do it with fuel savings,” Latko said. Latko and Swackhamer agreed that fleet
managers don’t have to go at it alone when working to finance sustainable practices. Swackhamer said Houston has secured $2.5 million in grants in recent years to pur- chase 27 propane-powered buses and fund an 18,000-gallon fueling station. Houston’s use of biodiesel has reduced its petroleum usage by more than 105,000 gallons each year. Its propane-fueled fleet, now number- ing 85 buses, is currently producing $3,117 in fuel savings, cutting HISD’s fuel costs by $265,000 a year. Mesa, meawhile, received a $400,000
grant several years ago to refit older diesel buses with emissions systems that collect particulates. Increasing the propane feet to 89 buses following a recent order of 61 from Blue Bird will also save Mesa even more money and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2,789 tons this year alone. Te district has designs on eventually going all propane as it retires older diesel buses. Latko said an effective transportation sustainability program is a “true win-win- win situation” that saves taxpayer dollars, conserves resources and gives students and the community fresher air to breathe. It’s not just about recycling or alternative
fuels, he concluded, "It’s about changing your thinking.”
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